posted on February 27, 2001 10:37:35 PM new
Quite a few people in my family (sister, cousins, etc) and friends are on anti-depressants, including myself. I didn't realize until I started taking them myself and dealing with depression - what a large group of people are affected by it.
I've been on so many meds and done so much research on the internet- I know more about it than my doctor!
Just wondering? - Anyone else out there on the depression medication merry-go-round???
posted on February 27, 2001 11:20:21 PM new
Gratefully I am no longer on the merry-go-round. Finally found one that works well for
me with pretty much no side effects. This one is Effexor XR and I have been on it for probably about a year now. Prozac was horrible, Zoloft terrible side effects, Paxil was okay, Wellbutrin is a good one too. They all work differently on different people, so it's a good idea to try till you find the one that works for you.
I do not usually condone drugs, but clinical depression is a potentially fatal condition if it is not treated.
Rocker
posted on February 28, 2001 03:54:27 AM new
I spent some time on Serzone, about 14 months total. The doctor started me on Paxil, but it had some, umm, unwanted sexual side-effects. I did pretty good on the Serzone, it brought me back to an even keel slowly but surely. My seritonin levels had taken a beating by some things going on in my life that I had no control over, but was responsible for. I stuff things emotionally, which got me through what was going on, but really took it's toll emotionally.
Depression still rears it's nasty head at times, and when life starts looking black again, I have some things I do to combat it. Anyone having to deal with that pit has my sympathy and understanding.
posted on February 28, 2001 04:03:34 AM new
I've been dealing with this "pit" for over 5 years now. I'm on the last and only anti-depressants I haven't been on - Nardil, an MAOI. While I'm not crazy about the diet restrictions and side effects, it seems to be working better than anything I've taken in years.
Meya - I agree, hate those "unwanted sexual side effects"!!
posted on February 28, 2001 04:38:46 AM new
I get unexplained episodes of depression that
only last about 15 minutes a couple times a month. They seem unrelated to any event or time of day - food - etc. Since I can sit and wait them out the doc and I agreed not to medicate for them. But yes many of my friends
are on meds and some help some don't.
posted on February 28, 2001 05:00:39 AM new
I've spent perhaps three of the last six years on anti-depressants. Zoloft made me hyper. Trazadone was good for sleeping and sleeping and sleeping... Now I'm trying Paxil. I've been on it for about six weeks after a two year hiatus from medications. It seems to be working except that it's caused insomnia which requires medication.
Robert J. Hedaya,M.D. wrote a book,"The Antidepressant Survival Guide", about making anti-depressants more effective by avoiding some common substances (sugar, alcohol,etc.) and increasing exercise. His formula worked for me until I quit exercising and ate all the wrong things over the holidays.
[ edited by saabsister on Feb 28, 2001 05:02 AM ]
posted on February 28, 2001 06:13:49 AM new
I agree with Saabsister about the Trazadone causing sleeping. My doctor put me on it a month ago to help me sleep through the night, only problem is I want to take a minimum of one nap a day if not two and occassionally three.
posted on February 28, 2001 08:51:43 AM new
Zoloft 150mg in the morning and Trazadone 100mg @ night. Boy, is it nice not hating life all the time! Not to mention getting to have sometimes more than 6 hours of sleep a night.
posted on February 28, 2001 09:09:09 AM new
Meya: How did you take yourself off Serzone? Each time I try reducing the med level to wean myself, by the time I'm down to not taking any I become mean spirited, short tempered and cry most of the time. Help?
posted on February 28, 2001 09:19:05 AM new
I suffered a bout of reactionary depression from some problems that came up at work. The doctor put me on Xanex, but it did not help me at all and even made some symptoms worse.
I spent a few months in counseling and then finally had to transfer to another department. Removing myself from the situation seemed to be the best remedy and all my symptoms have vanished. I do follow a regime of natural supplements which help keep me on stable footing.
One of my neighbors had a terrible bout with depression that was caused by some eye medication her doctor had her on. Before getting any depression medication, make sure it's not being caused by other prescriptions.
I truly feel for people who go through this on a regular/daily basis. The worst part was feeling no joy in life and that was just so totally against my nature. If you can get through the guinea pig stage and find a med that works well, it can make all the difference.
posted on February 28, 2001 09:22:32 AM new
When I stopped the Serzone, it was with the blessing of my doctor. I slowly stopped taking it, over a period of about 10 days I think. My doctor told me that if you stop most of those meds too quickly, you can "crash and burn" from it.
I don't remember the dose I was taking, but I was taking it twice a day. I think I cut out a half dose at night, then in the morning, then dropped the evening dose all together, then finally the morning. It's been a few years, and my memory isn't what it could be.
Maybe if you have that difficult of a time stopping, your body isn't ready for you to stop?
posted on February 28, 2001 09:51:47 AM new
I just saw a TV program that said women tend to have lower seritonin levels than men so women are more prone to depression, moodiness, etc. It made me feel better knowing it wasn't a ME thing!!
I was on Paxil for 3 years, which made a BIG difference, but don't EVER try to go off them quickly.....take about 2 months to wean yourself off them!
I then tried Serzone, but couldn't handle it AT ALL, so I'm left with a 3 months supply of them.......(??????)
I'm now taking Celexa which works great for me....no real side effects except the usual "not tonite sweetie, maybe next year"....
My doctor said that because they work as re-uptake inhibitors and are not really a "drug" (ie: tranquilizers, etc.) per-se, staying on them indefinately is OK. My seritonin levels will not improve by long-term use, but will only improve while I'm on the meds. So I guess I'm on them for life!?!?
posted on February 28, 2001 02:26:33 PM new
I've been taking "tranquilizers" all my life, but I didn't know it. I have asthma and was taking a medication that was a combination of ingredients, including "Atarax" which is a tranquilzer. I took the medication for 25 years, and by the time I was weaned off of it, I started going through withdrawal. So my doctor put me on Xanax and BuSpar. I take both. Plus, as I've gotten older, I've had major anxiety problems with claustrophobia. I tried to get off the drugs, but I have to take them to control the claustrophobia. So I'm in for the duration, I guess. I've been on medications all my life for one thing or another, so two more don't matter.
And THAT, my little buddies, is why Muriel is always so happy and chipper!
posted on February 28, 2001 06:41:16 PM new
I was on 4 different antidepressants before the one I am now on, prozac. I tried Paxil, Celexa, Welbutrin and soemthing else. I can't think of the name of it right now. None of them did anything for me. Sometimes I wonder if Prozac is even working.
I sunk into a depression after my daughter was born (I am and have been a single parent since the day I told "him" I was pregnant and it just sticks) and here I am...still on med's 6 years later.
posted on February 28, 2001 09:42:29 PM new
Depression and horrible, horrible PMS runs in my family. I fought the idea of taking medication for years---i thought i could "get over it" on my own----but finally admitted I couldn't any more than a diabetic can "get over" a lack of insulin. I broke down and tried an SSRI and the difference is like night and day. I will not go back to that pit. I will always be grateful that I bit the bullet and tried it, because now I live a normal life.
Rhondalee, my SO takes Parnate (another MAOI) for depression and social phobia. He has tried just about all the other drugs too. The MAOIs have the annoying food restrictions but in some ways they are more helpful than the SSRIs were for him. He had, uh, "libido" type side effects on SSRIs and you know how hard that is for a guy. Happily on the MAOIs he is "back to normal" (or at least at a level we can live with).
posted on March 1, 2001 02:45:06 PM new
Had to jump in here! I was on prozac for about 5 years, major major weight gain, but it worked. I finally got tired of trying to lose weight and trying to stay sane at the same time, so I slowly went off the medicine to see if I could handle things, well I could except for that dreadful PMS time 7 days or so before onset of my period, doctor put me on sarafem. This definitely works for me, I feel better during those days, and I don't need to take meds 365 days a year!
posted on March 1, 2001 09:36:26 PM new
I guess I'm one of the lifers....... been on the merry-go-round for most of the past 17 years. It would be nice tho if every doc didn't diagnose me differently. I was on Nardil for awhile along with Lithium. Been thru the tricyclics, the Wellbutrin, Prozac, now Effexor up to 150mg a day along with 150 of Trazadone at night to try and sleep. Still wake up after 3-4 hrs.
The many faces of Muriel
